Many documents and processes related to the manufacture of self-extinguishing cigarettes are known in the current state-of-the-art. The endowment of this feature to a cigarette is conventionally obtained by means of the of the application of some type of coating onto the cigarette paper, intended to modify the air permeability of the paper and in which both the type of the coating applied and its viscosity play an important role in the results obtained.
In order to obtain the above-mentioned goals two methods of treatment of the cigarette paper are known, as indicated below:                1) The first method consists of applying the coating uniformly onto the entire cigarette paper surface, such that all the paper has a reduced tendency towards combustion;        2) the second method consists of applying the coating on the surface of the cigarette paper only in previously defined areas, i.e., to create areas with a reduced capacity of combustion alternating with others with a normal tendency of combustion.        
Within each one of the above-mentioned methods of treatment to obtain a paper adapted to a self-extinguishing cigarette, various methods to obtain the proposed goals may be considered.
The first method (related to a uniformly covered cigarette paper, that is, with a low on its whole area ignition propensity, has a drawback that the air permeability of the paper is low, so that the content of toxic substances in the smoke is high. Moreover, another drawback of this method is that the combustion of cigarettes so manufactured is deficient: for example, black ashes are produced as well as an uneven and generally thicker than desirable combustion ring.
As of the second method, its main objective consists in reducing the air permeability of the paper in determined areas only, such that the combustion in these areas is reduced considerably. This effect may be obtained by different methods, such as, for example, by using a strong calendaring, by applying specially treated cellulose fibres, or with substances melting at a high temperature, by using certain hydrosoluble or liposoluble polymers, etc.
The main object of the present invention, consists in obtaining a cigarette paper adapted to the requirements of a self-extinguishing cigarette, by using components that do not affect its taste negatively and that besides, reduces the possibilities of ignition of the flammable materials that may enter in contact with it.
This objective has been totally reached achieved with the cigarette paper obtained by with the process of the present invention and by means of which the paper is manufactured, preferably on its internal side, with a suitable coating distributed continously or by areas, as convenient, using printing techniques where the printing “ink” consists, as it has been found extremely beneficial and contrary to the experience of the previous state-of-the-art, of a solution obtained from gum arabic or acacia gum dissolved in water, with or without fillers added.
On the other hand, it has been determined that the addition of a fire retardant filler to the composition helps to reduce the air permeability of the paper, without excessively affecting its viscosity, being the most preferred fire retardant filler those the ones coming from among those in the group consisting of aluminium hydroxide, calcium sulphate or magnesium hydroxide.